Inside Britain’s wild saunas

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Wellness at home is heating up. From plunge pools to pelotons, the home spa has undergone a radical evolution: and the latest trend, championed by everyone from Jack Dorsey to Gwyneth Paltrow, is the personal sauna. John Harris, Iglucraft’s UK distributor, has a long waiting list for his stylish, traditionally designed Estonian saunas, while Peter Mikic, one of the world’s most sought-after interior designers, says that in recent years he has seen an exponential increase. demand for home saunas and infrared rooms. “Time is a luxury and good health is the greatest luxury of all,” he says. “I have seen a marked increase in people, myself included, wanting to improve that investment in their homes. In addition to the ubiquitous home gym, that luxury also includes a sauna and plunge pool.”

The popularity of saunas has gone hand-in-hand with the growth of interest in wild and cold-water swimming, and today’s saunas are a far cry from the pine-lined cabins once associated with the ’70s. welfare.

Gabrielle Reason, secretary of the British Sauna Society, who has master’s degrees in psychology and physiology, is a keen advocate. “An analysis by Coventry University shows that whether you’re working out in a gym or sweating it out in a sauna, you’ll reap the same cardiovascular benefits. And what’s brilliant about this is what it means for older people or if they have mobility issues.” It is also a great weight loss tool. Although he clarifies: “The weight loss comes from cold immersion, which is as integral a part of the sauna ritual as the steam.” Among other benefits, Reason highlights the findings of Finnish cardiologist and scientist Dr. Jari Laukkanen, whose decades-long study of sauna bathing shows a direct correlation with longevity, as well as a lower incidence of Alzheimer’s, depression and cardiovascular disease.

It’s like a beautiful meeting room. We are a bit English and that’s why we keep our bathing clothes on.

apart from his health benefits, a sauna can also be a beautiful thing. Emma O’Kelly, author of Sauna: the power of deep heat, due to be published next month, says: “For centuries, the sauna was at the center of the community. It was where important initiation rites were held. The Finns called it the poor man’s pharmacy; babies were born in the steam; tasters and blood letters would treat the sick; and this was where the dead were prepared for burial. Everyone was welcome, of all ages, genders and backgrounds, and they still like to say that everyone is equal in the sauna. The good thing about saunas is that they cover a lot of bases. Not only are they aesthetically beautiful, but they have social, mental, and physical benefits. It’s a fun experience, it’s good for you, and it doesn’t have to be expensive.”

For the architect Juan D’Ornellas, pleasure is as much in the process as in the result. His sauna is located next to a huge swath of bamboo high on the bank of a tidal river on England’s south coast, placing it at the center of the natural world. “For me there is something elemental in this, which has to do with nature”, he explains. A passionate surfer, he spent time in Sweden, where he developed an interest in the sauna tradition, as well as an architectural fascination with the country’s long tradition of timber construction. With the help of fellow surfer and specialist carpenter Will Gilchrist, he based his sauna on the old Finnish sauna. savusauna which depends on the heat generated by burning wood without a chimney. The result is a solid structure made of Douglas fir with a habitable roof resting on staddle stones (which traditionally raised barns off the ground). The sauna relies on all sorts of local materials: Cornish potter Chris Prindl helped build the stove using peridotite stones, rich in iron and magnesium (which have a high heat capacity) from local quarries.

D’Ornellas is a fan of the intense heat and natural earth of his sauna, the walls of which have been blackened by smoke over the years. “I wait for the high tide and then I like to invite friends and we have about three sessions of about 30 minutes in the heat, pouring water. [a process called loyly] on the hot stones to create steam just before diving into the river from the jetty. There is nothing in the world better than that feeling.” On the porch is a large jug of ice-cold spring water drawn from a well on his property to maintain hydration, and at the end of a sauna, the friends enjoy a meal together. “I soak in it all day long,” she says. “That’s an integral part of the experience for me.”

Paul and Caroline Weiland turned to an Estonian-based company iglucraft to build them a Tolkienesque sauna situated beside a spring-fed pond in the fairytale woodland located within the 60-acre estate of Belcombe Court, their Grade I-listed Georgian home in Wiltshire. The company, which has also built saunas for David Beckham and Guy Ritchie, makes around 100 traditional saunas each year, with prices ranging from €12,900 to €39,000 for a custom-made model. “My children were very interested in us having a sauna,” says film director Weiland. “I thought we would never use it, but I did as they suggested, and to my happy surprise, we all do. We went in there with friends and children and talked for hours. It’s like a beautiful meeting room. We are a bit English and so we keep our swimming clothes on; You don’t want to jump in the pond and get pecked at your parts by ducks! Using the sauna has become an important part of weekend life, he says, “and I have recommended Iglucraft to so many people that I have started receiving invitations to dine with the Estonian ambassador.”

Having a sauna does not have to be exclusive or expensive. Sonja Dineley, an Irish-born sustainable farmer and cold-water swimming enthusiast, decided to build a rainwater pond (named Frank after her late father) at her home on top of a chalk hill. in Wiltshire. She wanted this to be in keeping with her environmental ethos: She swims in the pond 365 days a year, and the sauna “was also born out of a practical good health decision,” she explains.

“My husband Perin, a farmer, suffers from chest problems and had enjoyed the benefits of a sauna during a trip to Scandinavia. He actually was transformative for us. We are hard-working farmers and being able to relax our tired bodies in the sauna at the end of a long day is hugely beneficial. We built the sauna with the help of two wonderful local craftsmen and shelled out around £600 for the proper sauna oven. It has also become a great social place for us. Our three children love it. I even have my local book club there. We talk about books, we sweat, then we all scream and jump on Frank!

Former set designer and craftsman Joseph Turnbull builds custom cabins and saunas. He built himself a sauna outside the barn that he made a home for his wife and his new baby on the Roseland peninsula in Cornwall. “While studying fine arts at university, I did an Erasmus course in Finland where I studied carpentry,” he says. “My teacher was a sauna builder and I fell in love with them. I built one for us as a lockdown project, using Harvia for the stove and technical elements, and made a small cabin out of Douglas fir.” Friends came and loved the experience and it has since become something of a business with prices starting at £7,000. His next project is to build a pond to dive into. “The whole experience is fun, a bit like going to a pub – sociable but healthy looking!” Full steam.